Old Habits Die Hard
by allanime
Summary: One year after the movie, Conquerer of Shambala, and the military needs the Elric Brothers to protect the world, and Winry gets her chance to confess her love for Ed, and a couple is formed.
1. Chapter 1

**Old Habits Die Hard**

-Hey, another fanfic. It seems I can't stop writing new ones, and I have to focus on my others now. I'll get back to Tossed In after this. This is a year after the movie, Conquerer of Shambala, and if you haven't seen that or the original series, you SUCK. You need to know the original before I can permit you to whatch Brotherhood. Winry has her own automail shop (Go figures) and Mamoru reignites hope when he says he can bring the Elric brothers back.

Chapter 1, the One That Promises

It was an average day at Central, the streets lined with people entering and leaving shops, and those going around the city. There was one in particular, a boy who walked around with a black jacket with red sleeves thrown lazily over his shoulders like a cape over a navy blue tee shirt and black pants. His long, light brown hair was lying just over his eyes, which were grey. He took out a map with hastily drawn directions, and studied it for a minute.

_It's been a year since the vision I had, witnessing the final battle the Elric brothers faced on this world. If I am right, they will be needed for this world to remain in balance, and I need a reason for them to come back._

Glancing back at the map, he headed down one street until he came upon a shop with a sign that read:

ROCKBELL AUTOMAIL

Fixes and new automail

_This is the place, if anything can bring them back, it's her._

He went to open the door but noticed a sign that said she was on lunch break and she would be back in an hour. Ignoring the sign, he went in anyway.

_She needs to lock the door more often. Now how am I going to spend an hour waiting for her in this shop?_ He thought as he looked around.

"I know, I will take apart or study the way they were made!" he exclaimed, grabbing a hanging arm and putting it on the table before taking a screwdriver and starting to dismantle it. He was almost done putting it back together when Winry came into the shop, the sound of the door causing him to jump and make a few pieces clang on the ground.

"What was-" She looked up in his direction, confused. When she noticed him, she grabbed a wrench and ran up to him and tried to hit him with the tool. She would have, if he didn't hold up the automail arm he was rebuilding.

"I came here to discuss something with you, about the Elric brothers!" he cried out as she swung again, also blocked by the automail.

"What? How do you know them?" Winry asked.

"When they resided on this world I was a fan, their way of doing things a break from the norm. Then Ed disappeared without a trace, and some thought they were dead, killed by the military for some reason. But I got visions, I could see him and follow his adventures there, but I didn't think anything of it until I saw him come back for his last battle. I didn't witness it, it was in another vision. Then the dreams started, horrible dreams of a nation in chaos, death in the streets, dying inside, and an entire military government destroyed, and I know that Ed and Al can stop this, they just need to be willing to come back. That is where you come in." he said to her.

"What did you just say?" She asked him.

"I said that I can bring Ed and Al back, but I need you to come with me." He said plainly.

"I don't believe you. And I don't even know you, how can I trust someone I don't know?" She asked, raising the wrench.

"I will take you to see Mustang and have him tell you why we need the Elric Brothers." He said and spread his feet apart. He put his hands together in a certain manner, with his middle fingers touching at the tips and his pointer fingers straight to the sides in what looks like a simplified form of the Grand Arcanum. A complex transfiguration circle appeared before him and the shop disappeared in a great light. All the two could see was the Gate. A voice came from the gate,

"You have knocked on God's door, but shall it open?" the voice asked, and the boy knew it meant a sacrifice.

"For twenty souls transport the girl Winry and myself safely to Führer's office of this world." He told the voice and held out his hand. As Winry looked, the misty forms of twenty people came from his hand and solidified into spirits. They floated into the door, and it opened and revealed the Führer in his office, Mustang going through some paperwork. The boy turned and held his hand out to Winry.

"I'll go with you, but you have to tell me your name." she said shakily.

"My name, my name is Mamoru Subete." And she grabbed his hand and he led her into the Gate. They headed through and Mustang jumped in surprise at the two people who suddenly appeared in his office.

"Get an appointment." He said, looking back at his papers.

"Yeah, Mustang. And I will also quit being a state alchemist!" he said, spinning his state given pocket watch at his side.

"It's you, Spirit, who do you have?" He looked at Winry for a moment before recognizing her,

"Winry, what's this for?" he demanded an explanation from Mamoru.

"It has to do with the Elric Brothers. You have to tell her about Tanäza. It will help with what I am doing." He said.

"Fine, I'll do it." he declared, looking to Winry.

"Lately we have gotten wind of another country that is growing very strong. It normally would not be a problem, but this country has declared open hostility towards us. There have been a few small fights between our border patrol and the country, Tanäza. It is a small problem as of right now, but it may escalate into an all out war. And with the growth of this possible threat, we might not win if a war starts."He informed her.

"And what does Ed and Al have to do with this?" Winry asked.

"I believe that with their power, we could win or even prevent a war completely." Mamoru answered for the Führer. "And I also have my own reason for going after them." He added.

"And what may that be?" Mustang asked.

"You think I'm going to say? Then what would be the point?" Mamoru retorted.

"You joined the military, you answer to me! You have to do as I say." Mustang said firmly.

"I did join the military of my own accord, but I only did it for the research that is open to state alchemists. That and everyone I met said I should, but I don't like all the rules." He said, annoyed at the reason for his inferiority.

"Well, I see that you two get along great, so can we move on to the part where I'm involved." Winry looked back and forth between the two.

"You love Edward, right?" Mamoru asked in a yes-you-do kind of way.

"I did a while ago, but I moved on." She said.

"What do you feel when you think of your memories with Ed?" He asked demandingly.

She paused for a moment. "I…I feel love for him." She finally said.

"And here is a chance to tell him how you feel about him. It is **your** chance, so let's go and take out any competition that may have come up." He told her, and grabbed her hand and led her out of the center of Central, and went to a large house a few minutes away. He led her inside, and took her to the living room.

"This house is huge! Do you live in it by yourself?" Winry asked Mamoru.

"Yeah, it is pretty big, it can get lonely sometimes." He said as he grabbed a book from a bookshelf. It was an old, hardcover book with a red cover and gold writing on the spine. She couldn't read what it said until he opened it and she saw a plaque on the front under the title that read:

**SPIRITS AND DEAMONS VOLUME, 2**

**THE CCONSTRUCTTION AND RECREATION OF A HUMAN BODY AND DRAWING A SPIRIT**

_What a strange title for a book for alchemy._

He stopped on a page and placed his hand on the ground. Alchemic energy shot from his hand, and the book started to glow.

"May the doors open and the spirits make the way; let the portal open and an entrance erect. May the demons stay far and the offering accepted. Let the lamb be killed by the hand of god, let the blood be drank by the devil. Lest opposing forces meet and fatal wounds traded. Lest the world be thrown into chaos and heaven and earth burn. Open the path to The Gate!" He looked up at the last sentence, and the room disappeared once again and left only the Gate.

"You stand before the door of infinity, what would it want you for?" It asked.

"I will give you whatever amount of souls you want to take for a safe passage for Winry Rockbell and myself, Mamoru Subete, to the other world. Passage to Germany." He said, and suddenly starting floating. He seemed to be expecting it and went with it. He stopped rising about ten feet off the ground, and he waited for a moment. Then it seemed that souls were ripped from his body. He felt an intense pain all over his body, and let out a pained yell. Winry ran over and yelled to let him down.

"No! We need them. Don't let it get to you, I'm fine." He said, and then held back another scream. The souls poured out of his suspended body for a long time. Then it stopped as soon as it started and he fell to the floor. Without a word, the doors opened and Winry saw the other side, and rushed over to Mamoru's side to help him up.

"We need to go across, so I guess you'll have to help me walk through that." He said when they got on their feet.

"But I don't trust it; it hurt you when it did that." She said, concerned.

"You have to." He told her. She reluctantly accepted and led him through. She almost didn't go completely through because of a gut-wrenching feeling she got when she went inside the Gate. But thoughts of Ed kept her going. They made it through, and they fell into a street in the afternoon outside a large house. She dropped Mamoru and fell, falling unconscious as she went down. But before she fell completely into darkness she heard someone yell her name and Ed's face in front of her, his arms wrapped around her stopping her fall. Then, nothing.

-that's it. I couldn't go any farther in this chapter, but love will spark in the next chapter or two. Yes, things will get serious and alchemy will be introduced into an alchemy-free world.

-allanime


	2. The One Who Explains

Chapter 2, the One That Explains

There was a room, pale blue in color with a single hanging portrait of flowers and two windows on one wall. In this room laid Winry and Mamoru, in separate beds, and there was Edward sitting by Winry's side. It was morning and the blinds on the curtains were open, and sunlight streamed through, illuminating the room.

_ Winry, why are you here? How did you get here and who is that boy._ He thought, glancing over to Mamoru, his blue shirt, black pants and jacket were folded next to the bed, the same for Winry's clothes but both their clothes were replaced with a white shirt and pants.

_ And how did he get this?_ He asked in his mind, looking down at the silver pocket watch, then put it on a table next to his chair, then looked down to his own, remembering that world, the fun and adventure, the death and destruction. He grabbed Winry's hand lightly when her eyes fluttered, then opened.

"W-Where am I?" she asked, shakily at first.

"You're at my house, I found you right outside the door." He told her.

"Your house?" She asked dizzily.

"Yeah, I have made quite a reputation as a scientist in the time I have been here." He said to her, and they heard Mamoru stir. He got up groggily and shook his head to wake himself up.

"Great, now my entrance is ruined." He said, the shaking effective.

"What do you mean your entrance?" Ed asked, a questioning look on his face.

"I was going to surprise you with that pocket watch, but the Gate ruined any chances of that." He told him.

"The Gate? What did you do?" he asked, a grave tone in his voice.

"You know how to make the Philosophers Stone? You don't need to use living souls. I found a way to summon the Gate, and can barter souls with It." he informed the older alchemist.

"Who are you?"Ed finally asked him.

"I am The Spiritual Alchemist Mamoru Subete, and I am here to return you to the world you are from." Mamoru introduced himself as Alphonse entered along with a woman who resembled someone Mamoru knew.

"Oh, and I have a message for you both from Rosé. She says, 'thank you for all you have done, and make where ever you are a better place.'." he said to the two men in the room.

"Rosé? She said that?" Ed turned to Al after he asked, smiling.

"Yeah, and Mustang told me to tell you 'Don't expect to be paid sick for this when you come back.' when I found a way here." Mamoru added, a finger on his chin as he looked up, trying to remember if he forgot if Mustang had said he was kidding after.

"Agggggghhhhh! That Mustang, he'll pay for all the things he said to me!" he yelled in a fury. But, forgetting his anger, "Did he achieve his goal yet?" he asked, looking Mamoru in the eye.

"He is now Führer, so yes, he did. But he still hates paperwork, and acts the same as before." He told the alchemist.

"Wait! Wait, I'm forgetting myself here. Are you two hungry? I can cook something to eat, if you want." The blonde one asked, a hand behind his head.

"Yeah, and after, I'll tell you how I got the state alchemist pocket watch and how I managed to find a way here. I know you've been restraining yourself the whole time." Mamoru got up and grabbed his clothes. He walked to the door, and turned back to ask where he can find the bathroom. He headed out once he was told, and Ed sat back down next to Winry.

"He's a strange one, I know." Winry said once he was comfortable.

"But also very interesting. So, what's changed since we left?" Edward asked.

"Well, I got a store in Central, and I am pretty popular in automail. I've had some guys come and pretend to be interested in automail so they could get a date with me, but I've never gotten into anything serious. Hughes' wife is still down, but she is trying to date again, and I don't know how her first relationship is going, but she needs someone. A lot of people tried to fill the shoes of Izumi after she died, but no one could. The old government was in control until Mustang convinced them to reenacting the Führer idea, with him as the new leader to kick it off. Some of the state alchemists retired and new ones replaced them, but they weren't any you knew. Oh yeah, and Riza Hawkeye is now Riza Mustang." Winry said, and Ed reacting to each new piece of information, and he nearly fell over when she mentioned Riza getting married to Roy.

"What? They got married?" he asked a look of utter amazement on his face.

"Yeah, it was soon after that last fight that they got engaged, having apparently dated in secret. They got married a month ago, and it seems to be going great for them." Winry said as Mamoru walked back in, dressed in his usual attire. He looked at the pair talking to each other, and at the pair in the corner looking at him. The second was Al and some girl that looked remarkably like Rosé.

"You see that Edward isn't going to be moving anytime soon, so you stand there like idiots when you could be making food in his absence. So, what's going on here?"He said, asking about the way they had been standing there for the past few minutes.

"Um… there is nothing else to do." Al said, confused.

"And who are you? What's your name?" he asked the Rosé look-alike.

"Its Noah, and Ed saved me from some thugs who were going to sell me and he gave me a home. He is a wonderful person, and he cares for those around him." She said, and Mamoru knew immediately the deal with her.

_ So she's the competition. Huh, Winry can't seem to get away from Rosé, even in this world._

"So, is food going to be made or are we going out to eat?" Mamoru asked to everyone in the room, and they all understood one thing, and that was that not only was Mamoru really hungry, but so was everyone else.

"Well, I guess we can eat at a restaurant, there is a really good one close by. I'll drive." Ed stated and got up, and everyone followed him and piled into his car.

"How are we going to explain all of us?" Mamoru asked during the short ride to the restaurant.

"Let's just say it is a welcoming dinner." Ed casually said back. He heard some grumbling when Al shifted in his seat and pushed some of the cramped occupants of the car. But they got to their destination a couple minutes later, with relieved sighs from the back as the exited.

"So, what kind of restaurant is this?" Mamoru asked, looking up at the name, something he could read if he tried, but was too hungry to bother.

"It's a local one, and I know the owner, so I am a pretty good customer." Ed said as they walked inside and was seated by a waitress at a window table.

"So, you said you would explain everything over food. I say, the wait is a good enough time to tell your tale." Ed inquired casually once everyone had decided what they wanted and had made their orders, Mamoru's being the largest. He basically ordered anything that had meat in it, which was almost every plate.

"Well, I guess you're right, so here I go. I'll start off by saying this: No matter what you do, no matter how many times you say to not do something, people will always try doing it almost just for that reason. It's the same with human transmutation, me being an only child, the only comfort for my single mom and I was my alchemy. My dad was a state alchemist, or so I'd been told, and my mom was a botanical alchemist, usually making herbs for medicine. One day, when I was four, my dad went off on what he said was an average patrol of the country border. At least, that's what mom told me.

So he goes off, but he doesn't come back when he said he would, and at first I thought that was because of something that held him up, but two years past and still no sight of father. The military had been doing an undercover search for him, and when they gave up, so did we. Things went downhill from there, mom having to work longer hours and spend more time making herbs and medicine, I even went to work in the fields for work, and brought back whatever I earned to help her keep us alive. Then, six years since my dad disappeared, my mom got sick with a plague. The doctors tried to cure her, but they had no idea what the plague was so they could only give medicines to numb the pain. The symptoms of the plague were like those of a fever, but only when in its early stages. Then red bumps appear on the skin, the individual becomes dizzy and lightheaded before an excruciating pain comes from their bones. They are bedridden, which only speeds up the process. When their bones start to hurt, it means the plague is advancing into its fatal stages, when the bone marrow is decomposed, followed by muscles and tendons, rendering the victim almost dead. Then, when it reaches the last phase, the brain is shut down after the central nervous system is painfully destroyed." He paused, tears starting to roll down his face. His voice shook a little when he started again.

"My mom was strong, and stood against it for eight months before giving in. during that time I got into the occult, thinking maybe spirits could help my mom. But I could not understand how they called the dead, and couldn't do anything, and my mom died. It was soon after that I realized what might work for me. I thought about bringing my mom back, but trying something no one else had. I mixed alchemy, with the occult. I thought, because souls existed, then there were souls that are on earth, and I could exchange them for my mom back. I worked so hard, and when I was eleven, I thought I had it. I took this book," he said, holding up the book Winry saw on the other side of the Gate.

"And the others in the trilogy. I took them to the graveyard my mom was buried, and tried to bring her back. I failed, lost and learned something that night. I failed the transmutation, lost my arm, but I learned I was right. I gained the ability to use souls in alchemy, and summon The Gate and use the souls to 'barter' with it. I got my arm back that way. But it looked like it had exploded, so i had to use alchemy to fuse it with Automail. Then, like you, I joined the military, for the funds and research materials, where I have become a 'great' alchemist. But your home world need you back, you and Al, there is a great danger that could destroy all you remember from there." he finishes.

"...Wow...thats alot to hear...but what is that danger?" Ed asked, speaking his and Al's thoughts.

"I'm sorry, but its sensitive busness, you'll have to wait 'til we get back to your place." Mamoru replied, and refused to say another word until the food arrived, where he looked at his food, smiled and said, "let the games begin!" and began to eat hungrily.

The others were all eating happily, and each were amazed as they saw Mamoru still eating like he was starved for a week while they were getting close to finishing their meals. He was still eating for a half hour after everyone had finished, and ate his last bite when the check came.

"...WHAT! THATS WAY TOO MUCH!" Everyone in the building turned and looked at them after Ed's loud yell, where he stood so suddenly that his chair flew into a waiter. He looked around at everyone, smiling awkwardly with a hand behind his head. "Sorry everyone, I didnt mean to yell like that, I apologize"

After he got his chair back, appologizing to the waiter it hit, he sat and got out a checkbook, from which he grudgingly wrote the check to pay for the meal.

"Is it realy that much?" Winry asked, and Ed showed her the bill, and her eyes widened and she gasped. She then sat quietly, looking at her hand folded in her lap apologetically, as if it was her fault Mamoru ate so much.

"Hey, come on, I wont let you pay for me." the boy with a botomless stomach said, pulling out his own checkbook.

"How could you have that? The money is different on this side." Al asked quietly.

"My secret." Mamoru said simply as he wrote a check for his portion of the meal, the large part, and slid it to Ed, who took it silently, staring at the boy who was handing him so big a check. They paid and left, and when they got there they relaxed in the living room.

"So, what is the danger you mentioned earlier?" Al started to ask, but Ed asked first.

"Well...there is a rival country rising and causing trouble and Mustang needs you to come back so your presence may prevent a war. Putting it simply, he wants to show you off, and if that doesn't work, you will fulfill the other part of duties as a State Alchemist, fighting in wars..." He explained to the brothers calmly. He also then fell asleep before they could pester him with questions, and later Noah moved to her room for the night, leaving Ed, Al and Winry awake in the living room.

...

Ha. That's where i stop, cuz im getting bored... but anyway, if i get unbored or want to extend this chapter i will, if not the next on will continue it. Sorry...

~allanime


End file.
